This is not to understate the terrible problem of homelessness among Russia's poor. That problem is obviously of a different caliber and deserves equal consideration with the plight of the homeless in New York, Paris or London. But in these days of nascent capitalism, rent-paying residents tossed onto the street with no protection from the law or social custom merit a thought, too.
Given the dollar's current status, a disproportionate number of foreigners are being affected by this new form of urban blight. The latest victim to come to our attention is Cami McCormick of Radio Maximum's Moscow in the Morning program. She announced on the air recently that she had been thrown out of her flat by a landlord who wanted to double the rent. But we have a contract, she objected. Only to hear the landlord say that the contract would be torn up.
Cami McCormick has no recourse in Russian law at this time. In fact, Russian institutions are more likely than not to weigh in on the side not of the tenant, but of the landlord. In a similar case, police were sent after a foreign tenant who had the audacity upon being told she was being evicted to remove a lock she had installed herself. The landlord, who had called at midnight to tell the tenant to be out in the morning, filed charges for theft. The victim had no protection.
Cases like these happen over and over these days. How many times have we heard acquaintances say they need extra blankets for a friend who has been thrown out of the house? How many times have acquaintances been on the verge of signing a lease, only to have the landlord demand a big hike in the negotiated rent? How many times has a friend been jubilant about finding a place, only to have the landlord announce at the last minute that it has been rented to somebody else?
Moscow needs a legal framework to protect both foreigners and Russians from these abuses. Clear legislation would also be in the best interests of the landlord, who equally has little recourse now if an unscrupulous tenant damages his property or fails to pay the rent. But legislation is unlikely to be drafted at this time. In the absence of laws, landlords should be made aware, perhaps through a public relations campaign, that it is wrong to flout the standard of the so-called "civilized" world in their eagerness to make a dollar.
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